This gallery includes a variety of stop frame puppets for commercial advertising and film production. The images are copyright protected and may not be copied without prior consent.

ALL HANDMADE began making stop frame puppets for THE PUPPET FACTORY in Bristol over ten years ago and was the first full time employee to join the team and the last to leave when the company sadly ceased trading.

Little was known about the mysterious Captain Nemountil a team of deep sea reclamation divers recently discovered his underwater vessel, 'The Nautilus', whilst gathering artefacts from the wreckage of the Titanic.

The twisted remains of Nemo's iron-clad vessel lay deep within a cavernous trench just a few hundred metres from the broken hull of the tragic Atlantic cruise liner - buried underneath the thick black silt - hidden, forgotten, until now. Many of Nemo's strange and unusual hand-made mechanical inventions have now been reclaimed from the depths and are being faithfully restored for public viewing by the skilled hands of André Masters.

This remarkable mechanical machine is made from brass, copper, steel, rubber and glass. The engineering design comprises of a robust silver solder construction and the movable joints retain their original integral strength and flexibility. The design lends itself to a truly nautical influence from the diver's boots to the overall brass theme associated with all seafaring items.

This truly is a 'Captains companion'.

The deep sea divers in charge of reclamation found complex technical blue prints drawn in exotic octopus ink and maps charting undiscovered depths of the ocean along with many personal artefacts originally owned by Nemo himself. Some of which are expected to be available for sale as soon as they are restored in order to raise much needed funds for the scientific exploration team to finance further diving expeditions.

We now know Nemo was a very solitary figure and that he populated the vessel with steam-powered mechanical companions and clockwork automata rather than a human staff, each one with a very specific task to perform, like the cogs in a well-oiled machine - individual and yet intricately symbiotic.

The EGGMATIC is a fine example of Nemo's inventive genius, and is the first of the Steampunk Collectionof artefacts to be restored and made available for sale. From the Swiss-made timepiece (the heart of the mechanism) embedded in the back which governs the three minute egg timer mounted on the front, to the remains of bioluminescent squid blood that once provided the necessary chemical reaction to power the boiler which in turn would heat the copper ring surrounding the egg and steam-cook it to the desired hardness. This little breakfast companion delivered his masters egg, cooked to perfection via its fully articulated legs and feet which can still be moved by hand and animated or posed in many different ways. All of this exquisite detail purely because Nemo preferred a more refined steam-cooked egg rather than a boiled one.

Scientists and engineers are currently studying the various mechanical wonders to uncover the secret of the rare power source which at some point provided the necessary energy to sustain artificial life and hopefully will again at some point in the future. Alas, for the moment, this particular remarkable mechanical gastronomic miracle remains in stasis due to the rare if not extinct source of its bioluminescent power which at one time drove the heart of this amazing little machine and lit the way as The Eggmatic manoeuvred through the dark corridors of the Nautilus to serve its eccentric master. For now, he remains possibly the world's most expensive and charismatic egg cup - waiting patiently for a new master or mistress.

Sculpting the main female stop frame puppet character featured in Kate Bush's music video 'Mistraldespair' for the album '50 words for snow'. The figure was 1:8 scale, sculpted out of plasterline (medium) clay in approximately eight to ten hours from start to finish.

Once approved by the client, the sculpt is checked from all angles to ensure the figure is ready to be moulded. The original sculpture is usually damaged beyond repair during the mould making stage so it is vitally important that all of the details are finished and recorded by the mould prior to the casting phase during the next stages of the project.

The figure is 'clayed up' in a bed of water based clay making it easier to separate the oil based clay of the figure from the water based clay of the mould during the next stages in the process.

After the mould making process the final figure is cast out in a clear silicone rubber which required painting with skin tones to replicate the original brief set out by the client.

The final puppet with the added animatable (and replacement) hair and movable eyes. This puppet took me two weeks to make which included every stage of the development process including the overall design, sculpt, mould making, armature design and fabrication. The silicone casting, seaming and painting, hair and eyes and lastly the rigs which needed to be made to attach the figure to the multiple sets to assist the animator/director, Tommy Thompson during the entire filming schedule.

For more information regarding the project please go to:

www.katebush.com/news/mistraldespair-animation

ALL HANDMADE completed the armature design and fabrication, foam latex skin production and the final paint & finish for this close-up dinosaur head used to advertise DAIRYLEA DUNKERS for BERMUDA SHORTS. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

Animation technical supervisor RAY HARRYHAUSEN on set with the DAIRYLEA dinosaur. It was a great honour to work with the man who inspired my career in model making. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

Armature design, fabrication and foam latex production for this close-up gorilla head used to advertise VESPA motorcycles. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

Silicone Pygmies fabricated for a SODA CLUB commercial for DENIS RUSSO ASSOCIATES. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

The Pygmy puppets on set during the SODA CLUB commercial for DENIS RUSSO ASSOCIATES.Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

POPWORLD characters designed and fabricated by ALL HANDMADE in association with GRAPHICO NEW MEDIA. The characters wereused as new media/broadcast advertising for MUSIC INNOVASIONS LTD. Image courtesy of GRAPHICO NEW MEDIA and MUSIC INNOVASIONS LTD.

ALL HANDMADE designed and fabricated four characters in total for the advertising campaign. Image courtesy of GRAPHICO NEW MEDIA and MUSIC INNOVASIONS LTD.

The POPWORLD characters featured heavily in advertising websites designed byGRAPHICO NEW MEDIA which resulted in widespread publications in DIGIT and COMPUTER ARTS magazine. Image courtesy of GRAPHICO NEW MEDIA and MUSIC INNOVASIONS LTD.

ALL HANDMADE produced a series of puppets featured in the short film 'THE BITE' for SLINKY PICTURES. Image courtesy of SLINKY PICTURES.

The puppets were supplied with detailed heads and hands with basic armatures which were later dressed. Image courtesy of SLINKY PICTURES.

ALL HANDMADE utilises the latest techniques and materials in the puppet fabrication process. From the largest ball & socket joints to the smallest.

Sherlock Holmes puppet designed by THE PUPPET FACTORY. Armature design and construction, props and set dressing. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

Elvis 'The King' Presley puppet designed by THE PUPPET FACTORY. Armature design and construction, props and set dressing. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

'The Jailer' puppet designed by THE PUPPET FACTORY. Armature design and construction, props and set dressing. Image courtesy of THE PUPPET FACTORY.

Ball & socketarmature design and puppet fabrication for the 'CATHY' puppet character in the 'MAX & CO'animation feature film production in Romont, Switzerland. Pictures courtesy of FUTURE FILMS LTD.

Final silicone (standby) puppet fabrication for the'CATHY' puppet character in the'MAX & CO' animation feature film production in Romont, Switzerland. The original puppets were mainly designed and fabricated by Mackinnon & Saunders Ltd. Pictures courtesy of FUTURE FILMS LTD and MACKINNON & SAUNDERS LTD.